​Where It All Began

 

The story of Northridge begins with a love story. In 1968, Les and Jackie Connell married while Les was serving in the Army. Jackie's passion for elder care ran deep, rooted in the example set by her mother, Martha McGuire. A World War II nurse, Martha had witnessed firsthand the sacrifices made by the men and women who served their country, and when the war ended, her heart went with the veterans who came home changed, many of them disabled, with nowhere to turn. Nursing homes were among the few places that could offer them the care they needed, and that is where Martha devoted herself, eventually operating her own nursing home in Portland, Oregon at a time when formal elder care was still rare and largely unrecognized. Growing up watching her mother serve others with such quiet dedication, Jackie was shaped by that same spirit of compassion. When she earned her nursing degree and administrator license, she was ready to carry it forward.

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Three years after their wedding, Les and Jackie purchased a small nursing home just outside of Portland, Oregon and began building something together that was far more than a business. They ran it with care and dedication until 1974, when they sold it and moved south to Medford, Oregon, planting roots in the community they would come to serve for decades.

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In 1980, after the births of their three daughters, the Connells took their next step in senior care, purchasing the Rogue Valley Care Center. Jackie worked there for the next 14 years, bringing her clinical expertise and heartfelt commitment to every resident she served.

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Setting the Standard in Southern Oregon

 

In 1993, the Connell family broke ground on what would become one of Southern Oregon's very FIRST assisted living communities. When the doors opened in 1994, it set a new benchmark for senior living in the region, a place where residents could maintain their independence while having access to the care they needed, all within a warm, family-like setting. That same year, Les retired from his career with the US Forest Service and joined Jackie full-time as the facility manager. In 1995, the Rogue Valley Care Center was closed and its remaining units were converted to assisted living apartments, deepening the family's focus on that mission.

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Rising from the Ashes

 

In September 2020, that sense of community was put to its greatest test. Northridge Center Assisted Living burned to the ground in the devastating Almeda Fire, a tragedy that swept through the Rogue Valley. While the loss was profound and deeply personal, every single resident and team member evacuated safely. That outcome was no accident. It was a testament to the care, preparedness, and genuine attentiveness that has always defined the way the Connell family operates.

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In the face of that adversity, their commitment never wavered. In February 2021, the family was given a new opportunity: the purchase of Barnett Woods Senior Independent Living apartments. With that acquisition, they channeled decades of experience and their four pillars of Hope, Health, Happiness, and Healing into a renewed vision for what senior living in the Rogue Valley could be, and Northridge Senior Living was born.​